by S. R. Grey
“I didn’t know it was that long of a list,” I remark, laughing. “I think the basics are pretty simple.”
“True, but I still like the idea of having a plan,” he says.
“A plan, huh?”
“You know it.”
Brent is pretty intense once he gets into something. That’s why he ended up so good at hockey. He was obsessed with the sport from an early age.
After he and I finish ditching my pills, I ask him what step number two is.
“Oh, now comes the fun part, Aubs.”
He waggles his eyebrows, and, for fun, I feign innocence.
“Does this mean it’s time for sex?”
Laughing, he grabs me up in his arms and carries me back into our bedroom. I’m thrilled. Not just because I’m about to get it on with a hot hockey player, but the fact that he can carry me with ease is a testament to how well his ankle has healed.
“You bet your ass it’s time for sex,” he says lustily, finally answering my question as we tumble together onto the bed.
I laugh and cheer, “Yay!”
Brent makes short work of my shorts and the black and red Wolves sweatshirt I put on outside. Since he has on nothing but boxer briefs, those pesky things are off and on the floor in no time.
“Mmm…” I run my hand over his smooth chest and hard abs. “I like you naked, Brent.”
“Not as much as I like you naked,” he replies huskily, his hands roaming.
With every part of him now pressed to me, I murmur, “Hmm, I can tell.”
I love this man, and I love how he loves me, which is what he starts doing now.
“Brent,” I moan, moving beneath him.
There’s no way we can make a baby tonight, not with just one pill missed. But it’s still intense and meaningful, like we’re practicing for the real event and putting our all into it.
It will happen too. I know it. I have a feeling I’ll get pregnant fast.
Destiny holds it in the cards that Brent and I are meant to have a family. Ever since the day I first met him, in this very bed, it’s been meant to happen.
It’s funny, though, how I couldn’t stand him at first. But I couldn’t. I thought he was the biggest jerk.
And here I am now—wanting to have his kids.
How our lives have come full circle.
I realize then that I want to have lots of babies with Brent.
So, after we’re done loving one another, as we’re lying in each other’s arms, I bring this up to him.
“How many kids do you want, Brent?”
He tightens his arms around me. “It’s really up to you, Aubs. You’re the one who has to carry each one around for nine months. And, of course, you have to give birth.”
“True, but the idea of that has never bothered me. So, really, I’d be more than okay with having a few.”
“A few?” Brent’s voice is tentative, but also, I can tell, hopeful. “How many would you consider ‘a few’ to be?”
“I don’t know exactly,” I admit. “More than three, I think.”
Brent’s quiet, so I place my chin on his chest and peer up at him. In the moonlit room, I can tell I wasn’t wrong in reading him.
“You want a big family too, don’t you?”
Hope swells in my heart.
He nods, a little misty-eyed himself. “Yeah, Aubrey, I kind of do.”
“Well, that’s good.”
I begin trailing tiny kisses on his chest, then down over his abs.
But then I stop for a sec so I can look up at him.
“I’m glad we’re in agreement,” I say. “But I think that means we definitely need more practice.”
Brent chuckles.
He knows where I’m going with this, especially when I take him in my hand and start stroking.
“Babe,” he tells me, arching up. “I couldn’t agree more.”
The Big Day
It’s finally here.
The day I’ve been waiting for, the day I was fucking born for, the day that I marry the woman of my dreams—my wedding day.
I wake up in the tiny spare bedroom off from the kitchen and dining room area. It’s a room I usually reserve for kids when they stay over, like Ricky and Ronny. I have it decorated in a toy train motif, kind of like Thomas the Train threw up in here.
Man, I feel like I’m four.
Damn Lainey insisted I sleep my last night as a single man separated from Aubrey.
“Why?” I asked her.
“What do you mean why? You can’t see your bride the morning of the wedding,” she stated adamantly. “That would not be right.”
“Lainey,” I scoffed, “suddenly the traditionalist. Wonders never cease.”
Nolan walked by just then—we were in the upstairs hallway—and as he grabbed her ass, he said, “That’s what I keep telling this woman every day of her life. Her ass is a true wonder, for sure.”
She swatted his hand away, albeit with a smile.
I just rolled my eyes at them.
“You crazy kids,” I teased. “What am I going to do with you?”
“I don’t know.” Nolan shrugged. “Maybe send us to our room.”
He winked at Lainey, and I told the two of them to just go have sex, for fuck’s sake.
They did, leaving me standing in the hall.
Thinking about it now, I’m happy for them. It’s cool as shit that Nolan, in a few short hours, will be my brother-in-law. Hell, we’ve been such close friends for so long that he already feels like family.
We may as well make it official.
Speaking of which, the wedding is happening in a few short hours. That means I better get my ass in gear and start moving. There’s a lot to do. The church ceremony is at one o’clock, and afterward there are pictures to be taken and a big catered reception back here at the house.
After I get out of bed, I adjust my dick in my boxers and open the door.
“Ack, Mr. Oliver!” A young girl of about nineteen jumps back. “I’m so sorry.”
Shit!
The caterers must already be setting up, seeing as the girl is holding a large plastic-covered platter of what looks like cocktail shrimp.
“No worries,” I tell her. Motioning to the food, I ask, “Do you need any help with that?”
I kind of forget that I’m in nothing but boxer briefs until she glances down and, biting her lip, murmurs, “Wow…uh… I mean, no. I’m good.”
And with that, she scampers off, leaving me chuckling.
I’m not at my nine-point-one inches like when I’m hard, but even “at ease” my guy’s still pretty fucking impressive.
Nonetheless, I shouldn’t give out any more free shows of the goods to the catering staff. I head back into the bedroom where I can pull on a pair of jeans.
As I’m tugging vintage Levi’s up my legs, a slip of paper falls from one of the back pockets.
I reach for it and pick it up off the floor.
When I flip it over, I discover it’s not a piece of paper at all. No, it’s a strip of photos from a photo booth.
They’re pics of me and Aubrey.
“I remember that day,” I murmur as I take a seat on the edge of the bed and rake my fingers through my messy hair.
I realize then that I haven’t worn these jeans since last October. That’s why they were still in this room. At the time, I’d kicked them off downstairs with the intention of taking them down to the laundry room.
But I was too lazy and ended up tossing the damn things into this seldom-used bedroom.
I also recall why I was too lazy that day—Aubrey was waiting for me upstairs and I couldn’t wait to go to her.
We’d had such an amazing time that beautiful fall afternoon. We’d flown in for a quick weekend getaway when I’d had a couple days off with no games.
It was gorgeous here at the time. Cool, crisp fall days, with all the leaves changing to beautiful colors.
There’d been a fall festival in town that weekend,
which we’d gone to on day one.
That’s where we took these pictures.
I look down at the strip of photos now.
There’s one of Aubs feeding me a caramel apple.
And then one where she’s shoving it in my face, and I’m laughing my ass off.
The next one is of us looking at each other, all loving-like.
And finally, in the last pic, the one at the bottom, we’re kissing.
What hits me hardest, though, is the tiny tagline in the border.
It reads: Memories in a Minute that Last for a Lifetime
Yes!
That’s what these pics are—snippets in time of a beautiful fall day spent with the love of my life.
These photos will last a lifetime, just like us.
You know, I bought Aubrey this stunning multi-carat diamond tennis bracelet as my wedding gift to her. But I think I’ll wrap this strip of photos up and give it to her, as well.
Crazy as it sounds I have a feeling she’s going to love these four simple pics way more than a whole string of diamonds.
And that’s because the photos are of love and happiness, which is what we’re all about.
Married, At Last
My wedding is absolute perfection. I couldn’t ask for a more perfect day.
It’s a whirlwind filled with love and images that I look back on fondly as time moves on.
That’s what I’m doing today, reminiscing on a lazy afternoon. Brent and I are back in Las Vegas as he’s readying for the new hockey season.
It may be autumn, but I’m still thinking of that beautiful June day, the day I married Brent Oliver.
And this is what I remember…
Getting ready in the morning with the girls and laughing so hard that we ended up crying. I needed that lacy handkerchief from Lainey right there and then, my “something borrowed.”
I had already swapped out one white garter for the blue one Lainey bought at the lingerie shop as my “something blue.”
There was more than fun and tradition that day too.
There was…
My father walking me down the aisle, both of us sniffling as he gave me away to Brent.
The look of love in Brent’s eyes as the minister had us say our handwritten vows, the ones we wrote that Sunday morning.
Brent slipping the ring on my finger, making us official…
Or maybe it was the kiss afterward that really sealed the deal for me.
It was certainly memorable.
And then there were our friends and family cheering us as we were pronounced “husband and wife.”
The pictures taken afterward and the random squirrel that photobombed one of the outdoor shots.
And the reception back at the house.
More snippets and images…
Our first dance as husband and wife.
The “naughty” toast Nolan, Brent’s best man, gave.
Catching Nolan and Lainey in a spare bathroom later that night, doing the “naughty” things he had talked about during the toast.
Oh, and one of my favorites—when I pulled Aunt Gertrude aside and gave her the neon-green wrapped Area 51, that extra one from Lainey that we’d taken to the bridal shop.
I thought she might slap me, but she hugged me instead, thanking me profusely.
Ah, the love I receive for helping people get off.
More memories…
Eliza and Benny leading “The Locomotion” dance train at the reception.
Dylan and Chloe singing along to all the eighties and nineties songs that were played.
What was up with that, by the way?
I don’t know.
But what I do know is that the day I married Brent Oliver has gone down as one of the best days in my life.
Only topped by what came next…
An Everlasting Love on Ice
Ten Years Later…
The years have passed, and I love Aubrey more than ever.
We have a good life too.
No, wait, we have the best life.
Not only am I still playing for the Las Vegas Wolves, but we’ve continued to win more championships. I’ve accumulated so many trophies and awards for playing top-level hockey that it’s not even funny.
More importantly, though, I have the family I always dreamed of.
Aubrey and I have four kids now, two boys and two girls, with another son on the way.
Will we stop now?
Hmm, I don’t know.
We’re both still young, only in our mid-thirties. And pregnancy is easy for Aubs. She tells me that she’s up for more.
She also says that having my babies are the only memories that top our wedding day from all those years ago.
Hmm, so, on the more children thing…
I think we’ll just let fate decide.
That’s how we’ve lived our lives so far, so it makes the most sense.
Destiny brought us together.
Well, hockey and destiny.
I met Aubrey when she became my life coach. So the two are forever entwined in my mind.
I like to tell people that we went from “destiny on ice” to “vows on ice.”
But really there’s one more—our ongoing story is an “everlasting love on ice.”
And that, my friends, is the very best “on ice” of all.
What’s up next for the Boys of Winter hockey rom-com series?
Noel’s story, Illusion on Ice, releases this winter!
But before that comes out, there’s a football romance spin-off series on the way.
That’s right, due to popular demand, Graham Tettersaw, Chloe’s brother, will have his own story coming out this fall. The title is Forward Progress (Men of Fall #1).
Follow me on Amazon to be notified of these new releases.
S.R. Grey is an Amazon Top 30 and a #1 Barnes & Noble bestselling author. Her newest bestselling hockey rom-com series features a different hot player in every story. Plus, they can be read in any order since they’re all interconnected standalones.
Ms. Grey’s novels have appeared on multiple Amazon bestseller lists, including the Top 100 several times. She is also a Top 100 bestselling author on iTunes.
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Thank you to the readers, bloggers, ARC team members, and everyone who loves and supports this fun series. You’re all amazing and I appreciate each and every one of you.
Thank you, Kristin S., Barbara H., Franci N., and Julie D. for shining up Vows on Ice.
And thank you to Heidi P. for providing the Minnesota “inspiration.”
Lastly, a huge shout out to my family, friends, and esteemed hockey “consultants.”
Y’all make this beautiful journey possible.
Wait!
It’s not over yet.
Here’s the first chapter of Destiny on Ice, the story of how Brent and Aubrey met and fell in love. It’s also the first novel in the bestselling Boys of Winter series.
Golden Boy Gets a Little Tarnished
My father was a great hockey player. Back in the day, in the era of eighties’ big hair and synthesized music, Billy Oliver won not just one, but two Stanley Cups. He was awarded the Conn Smythe trophy both times and has received an assortment of
other hardware throughout the years.
He’s retired now, but my dad was once a star.
To me, though, he’s always just been Dad.
But as his only child, I have a legacy to live up to. I pray I don’t disappoint him. I pray someday I’ll be as good as he once was. And damn it, I better win a freaking Stanley Cup like he did.
I have no choice, not really. Since the moment my father first laced up hockey skates on my three-year-old little feet, the look of pride on his face told me even then all I needed to know—anything short of being the best will never do.
And guess what?
In many ways, I’ve become the best at what I do, which is, like my dad, play professional hockey.
I’ve been good since the start, a natural some say. I don’t know about that, but I do know that even before I was drafted—in the first round by the Las Vegas Wolves, an expansion team at the time—I was being called “The Golden Boy” and “The Next One.”
These days, three years later, I’m pretty much the poster boy for the NHL. And I have a slew of endorsement deals to prove it.
Lately, though, I’ve been falling short.
And I really don’t know why.
Something is missing for me in the game. Or is it something that’s missing in me?
I blow out a breath and shake my head.
Things started out so great. Where’d it all go wrong?
I made a name for myself early on. Expansion teams usually struggle for years before posting a winning record. Not so for the Wolves. With me centering what was then a subpar line, I was still able to make us shine. We came out swinging that first season in the league.
Brent Oliver Scores the Game-Winning Goal in His and the Wolves’ First NHL Game, Sets Up Teammates for Two More